Reviews

The Place Between by Kit Oliver

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laiinny's review

emotional hopeful lighthearted medium-paced

Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes

5.0

I love Oliver’s writing - just so good at writing the messiness that comes with real life and makes it palatable and nicely wrapped up so it works so well with the HEA romance. I really didn’t think I’d like this book because the plot seemed unrealistic but the realistic humanity of the main characters sold it for me. Couldn’t put this one down.

alstjohn's review

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emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted relaxing medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

hamalee's review against another edition

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3.0

I actually like the romance development here and the MCs. But there are way too many issues with the setting and the set up.

Ned you're finishing a PhD so you've been in academia at least 7-8 years, more since it sounds like you had some breaks. But you're still intimidated by a restaurant with cloth napkins? And vegetables? You plan to chase a professorship but you think you get to have any choice whatsoever about your location? And if you REALLY have that much trouble with undergrad level statistics WHY are you pursuing a research career? Jesus.

You're playing like your parents are these podunk working class folk, but they own a home in a city just outside Boston and Dad owns a mechanic shop--*we* all know they're loaded bro, why don't you? YOU used to own a home nearby, you know how much that shit costs. You are only *temporarily* broke because you chose to go back for a PhD, you KNEW the financial desert you were entering, why are you complaining like you're the only one in that boat? And college people like sports just as much as some blue collar people don't.

There's just so much weird class stuff going on that's trying to say something but it's too inaccurate and tropey to take seriously.

And CHRIS! What in the holy inappropriate, unethical, and unrealistic hell was that plan supposed to be????

a_fret_argent's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful lighthearted medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Loveable characters? Yes

4.25

mchellea's review against another edition

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5.0

This book!!!!! The beginning took a little while to pull me in completely but the pace of the slow burn + enemies-to-lovers was just right, which pleasantly surprised me bc I’m a bit too picky about the perfect slow burn pacing for enemies-to-lovers. Loved how there was time for the main characters to get to know each other and how there was still focus on the secondary characters (Baxter being the best one ofc, I love him and his lil tail wag so much). The fake dating scenario/reason in this was flimsy but I will still fight for this book and for Abbot

Also @Kit Oliver, if you ever want to make this into a movie, cast Dev Patel or a stretched out Kit Harrington as Abbot and Nicholas Hoult as Ned thank you

coco_lolo's review

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3.0

While I enjoyed several aspects of this book, it never quite went far enough with the side characters and the romance. When it came to Ned, though, the author blew it out of the park. It was so rewarding to follow a character deep in the weeds of finishing his dissertation, all while parenting a child he only got to see a few times a month and preparing to apply for jobs. I felt transported back to my time in grad school when I was balancing academia and a social life. Ned's character was compelling, so I wish the supporting characters and even Abbott had the same amount of charm. There was just so much needling: because Ned's dad and best friend and coworkers all fell into this same category of teasing—to the point where I wanted Ned to blow up at them—there wasn't much nuance. One thing I must commend Kit Oliver for is the fact that we had a queer male MC with a straight male best friend, something I've been craving after all the queer male characters who seem to only have spunky female besties. I wish we'd gotten to see more of Peggy since Ned's world revolved around her; there were missed moments when the author could have shown more of the father/daughter dynamics. As for Abbott, I felt like a had a better understanding of his character by the end, with bits and pieces of his background and personality being laid out over the course of the novel...and yet there was this sense of distance, even after Ned got to know him better. And I've just gotta say it: Jen was definitely underutilized, especially because we learned so little about her and Ned's relationship both before and after the infidelity and because she wasn't a real character for me.

I don't know, this is definitely a weird one to rate. Loved Ned's arc and the exploration of academia, and some of the moments between him and Abbott were nice. There was no unnecessary misunderstandings or angst, and the book ended at a place I thought fitting for both men. Oliver's writing got more than a bit repetitive though, what with all the times Ned's described rubbing his face/eyes/hair. I'm going to read more from this author to see whether the things I struggled with are reoccurring.

yukiojax's review

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emotional funny lighthearted medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

lazareen's review

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emotional medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

jengiraffe5's review

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funny lighthearted medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

levilore_'s review

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funny hopeful inspiring slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

I really liked the story and the way the characters found each other despite their past issues. The professor/student thing was a bit weird at the beginning but the characters being in their 30s made it less weird. I wish there was more about Abbot's family, especially why his sister is so much younger, because that feels like a plot point that was brought up and never resolved.

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